The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1887-02-09

success in 1888 are as favorable as any,
thing political can be.-DenUer Tribune.
EVEN the reds " feel the mellowing
influence of time. 1t is reported that
at meeting of Chicago anarchists last
week {" the proceedings were carried on
in low tone" This is definite gain
for humanity. Hitherto such councils
have resembled a symphony of fog
horns.-Ne,C York Tribune
A BILL passed the senate Friday, with
but one dissenting vote Chat of Mr..
VanWyck) to refund to the several
states and territories all moneys paid
the federal government under the d.
rect tax of 1861, amounting to $40, 000,-
600. The portion TO be returned to
Vermont was appropriated to the
Soldiers Home by the legislature of
1884.
JOHN BRIGHT has written a letter
deploring the fact that men supposed
to represent Irishmen and tenants in
the struggle now going on in Ireland
never speak a word of counsel to their
countrymen in behalf of industry, hon
esty or temperance, which would lessen
the evils in Ireland, though they would
not add to the Irish and American do
nations of cash.
WE regret to dispel an illusion which
the Il. Y. finds so pleasant, but the fact
is that the WATCHMAN is fully holding
its own in circulation, Notwithstanding
the somewhat desperate and unscrupu-
lous competition of the cheaper local
paper. Every year some of the old sub
scribers drop off for one or another
reason, but their places are filed by
new subscribers. On the whole, II. r..
we are pretty well, thank you; how is
yourself?
THE presidential preferences of the
Colorado legislature have been gath
cred, with the following result: OF the
forty-three republican members, thirty
six are for Blaine, one for Evarts or
Allison, one for Edmunds and five have
no choice. Not one of them is OPP
posed to Blaine. Thirty-three demo-
cratic members expressed preferences :;
twenty-seven are for Governor Hill of
New York, three for Cleveland, one for
Mcdonald and one for Henry George.
WE have no navy with which to
make counter show of force, but
surely the Canadians cannot have for
gotten that when they invaded our
borders by way of Lake Champlain, in
1914, Commodore MacDonough's flag
ship, the Saratoga" with which and
few smaller craft their formidable
fleet was either sunk or silenced, was
built at Vergennes within forty days
from the telling of the first tree that
entered into her composition. -Rutlond
Herald.
THE news of the election of Con-
gresham Reagan to the senate to sue
coed Mr.. Maxey was received here with
mingled sensations of pleasure, pity
and regret-peasure on the part of the
house that he will no longer ipfict
himself upon that body; pity for the
senators, who are doomed for six wears
to try to interpret his utterances; re-
greet that one of the most conspicuous
demagogues in public life has received
promotion, thereby displacing a quiet,
plodding man with reasonable allow
ance of common sense ASSASSINATION
Letter.
IN the Indiana legislature last week
the four labor men who had been voting
for Allen for United States senator aban-
doned their candidate, one voting for
Turpie and three for Harrison The vote
stood: Turpie (democraD, seventy-siX:
Harrison, seventy-four. The speaker
Ga republican, declared no election,
and Smith (democraO, who assumes to
be acting acknowledgement and presi-
dent of the senate, declared that Turpie
was elected. 1t is said that the re-
publicans will contest Turpie's claim in
the United States senate, on the ground
that the democratic majority in the
legislature is fraudulent one.
A SENSATIONAL story came from
Lincoln, Nebraska, recently to the eff
feet that Brigham Young, the notorious
Mormon, is alive and living in seclusion
near that city, and that he has of late
held several conferences with strange
men. Delegate Game of Utah SAYS the
story is false. He saw Brigham Young
buried and ten-ton stone put on top of
him. That ought to have settled him,
but there is no telling what a Mormon
will do. An eX-Mormon in Washington
declares that wax figger" was
buried instead of Young, and insists
that Young was hidden, to be "resur-
rected !" at some opportune moment
THE first natural effect of such a
calamity is to make people dread a
journey by rail. But in such matters
the only sensible rule of thought and
conduct is the law of averages. Sta
tistics show that there is less liability
to injury on railroads than there is in
the streets, or even in our houses; and
if a railroad extended round the earth.
and was of the average excellence of
Massachusetts roads, a person might
ride its length one hundred twenty-five
times before it would come his turn to
be killed. The road where this acct
dent occurred is at least up to the Mas
sachusetts average. Rutland Herald.
THE presidential preferences of the
Michigan legislature have been taken,